A Woi*^  3Fi*nm  ila^lu*a 

you  were  to  find  yourself  some  morning  at 
the  dis{)ensary  of  the  Hosj)ital  for  Women 
and  Children  in  jMadura,  South  India,  what 
would  you  see?  As  you  enteretl  by  the  back  door 
leading'  from  the  mission  com])Ound,  where  the 
doctor’s  bungalow  is,  into  the  office  of  the  dis- 
pensary there  would  very  probably  be  a little 
cart  backed  up  to  the  steps  with  a curtain  in  front 
and  another  behind.  If  no  boys  or  men  were 
about,  we  would  see  the  curtain  lift  very  carefully 
(at  first)  and  a face,  veiled  to  the  eyes,  peer  out. 
Then,  its  occupants  assured  that  no  men  were 


2 


A USorb  from  li^la^ura 


at  hand,  enough  of  the  curtain  would  be  held 
back  so  that  the  two  or  three  women  and  as  many 
children  could  climb  out  and  come  up  the  steps 
into  the  office.  Already  we  would  have  .shut  the 
door  from  the  office  into  the  waiting-room. 

Why  all  this  .secrecy?  Becau.se  these  women 
who  have  come  in  the  cart  are  gosha  women — 
Mohammedans.  They  are  never  allowed  to  .see 
any  male  person  except  relatives.  We  attend 
to  their  needs,  and  then  the  poor  women,  who 
live  most  isolated  lives,  go  out  to  the  cart  and  back 
to  their  hou.se  again.  The  coming  to  the  ho.spital, 
even  though  they  are  ill,  is  a bright  spot  in  many 
of  the.se  women’s  lives.  We  hope  we  have  given 


A Ifltirft  from  fflahitra 


3 


them  something  besides  medicine  to  take  back 
with  them. 

After  they’ve  gone,  we  open  the  door  into  the 
waiting-room,  and  what  a sight  greets  our  eyes ! 
INTany  patients  have  accumulated  during  the  time 
the  door  has  been  closed.  Fortunately,  time 
doesn’t  mean  much  to  these  people,  and  for  the 
most  part  they  wait  patiently  for  their  turn. 
There  are  women  sitting  silent,  some  listening 
to  the  Bible-woman  while  she  talks  to  them  and 
shows  them  Bible  pictures.  Children  of  all  aTCS 
are  everywhere,  and  babies  crawl  contentedly 
about  the  floor  chewing  a piece  of  sugar  cane  or 
a green  cucumber. 


4 


A ^BDr^  from  iQa^ura 


As  soon  as  the  white  doctor  appears,  it  is  a 
signal  for  each  patient  and  her  relatives  who  have 
come  with  her,  to  make  her  wants  known. 
Everybody  begins  to  talk,  asking  all  sorts  of 
questions.  Here’s  an  old  woman  who  throws 
herself  prostrate  at  the  doctor’s  feet,  asking  that 
special  attention  may  be  given  her  daughter  who 
has  come  many,  many  weary  miles  in  a springless 
bullock  cart.  Here’s  a poor  young  mother  with 
tears  in  her  eyes  holding  up  a blind  child,  beseech- 
ing “doctor  amma”  to  do  something  for  the  hope- 
less, wailing  bit  of  humanity.  Another  undoes  a 
dirty  cloth  and  shows  a baby  only  a few  days  old 
with  the  signs  of  death  already  on  its  tiny  face. 


A Iflnrh  from  fHaimra 

In  contrast  to  some  of  the  sad  cases  are  those 
who  have  come  back  to  show  that  they  are  much 
better  or  entirely  well.  For  instance,  here  is  a 
happy,  laughing  young  girl,  who  a few  weeks  ago 
was  not  able  to  walk,  having  severely  injured  her 
knees  And  here’s  an  old  lady,  making  many 
salaams.  The  doctor  is  sorry  to  admit  that  she 
has  forgotten  of  what  ailment  the  poor  old  soul 
has  been  cured,  but  it  cheers  her  heart  to  see  the 

gratitude  on  the  smiling  face. 

It  is  hard  to  get  through  the  small  crowd 
without  stepping  on  a lively  adventurous  baby,  or 
without  stopping  to  speak  to  familiar  old  laces 
or  pleading  new  ones.  Two  by  two  they  are 


A Ittort  frnni  iHabitra 

poing  into  the  consulting  room  where  the  assistant, 
]\riss  Pitchannithu,  will  try  to  find  out  why  they 
have  come.  This  is  not  always  an  easy  task  as 
they  love  to  tell  all  the  family  history,  and 
invariably  go  into  many  unnecessary  details. 

So  while  Miss  Pitchamuthu  is  asking 
Questions  you  might  like  to  go  into  a little  room 
where  many  minor  .surgical  cases  are  attended  to 
every  day.  In  one  chair  is  a girl  whom  we 
recognize  as  from  the  Girls’  High  School  at 
Mangalapuram.  She  has  a great  hole  in  each 
ear-lobe,  big  enough  to  hold  a fifty-cent  piece. 
■^Mien  I ask  her  what  she  wants,  she  looks  up 
shyly  and  says  she  wants  small  holes  as  the 


A frunt  fUailnra 


7 


girls  at  school  all  have.  So  we  put  in  something 
in  order  that  she  may  not  feel  the  pain,  cut  off 
a piece  on  the  bias,  sew  the  ends  neatly  together, 
and  in  a few  minutes  there  are  two  aood  ears, 
nearly  as  good  as  if  they  had  been  let  alone  in  the 
first  place.  It  is  a success — and  the  girl  will 
enjoy  being  like  her  classmates  in  style  as  to  ears! 

These  poor  people  who  come  to  the  hospital 
and  dispensary  are  full  of  superstitions  and 
constantly  consult  soothsayers  and  astrologers. 
One  patient,  Nahaletcheuny,  was  very  ill  with 
pneumonia.  On  the  day  of  the  crisis  her  relatives 
came  and  told  the  doctor  that  Nahaletcheuny 
must  die  in  three  days— the  astrologer  had  said 


8 


A Wnrb  from  iHabitra 


so.  Therefore  they  must  take  her  home,  as  she 
must  not  die  in  a Christian  hospital.  We  said 
she  would  not  die,  but  as  arguments  are  of  no 
avail  in  these  cases,  we  had  to  let  her  go.  In  a 
few  days  her  relatives  came  back  saying  Nahalet- 
cheuny  was  much  better.  That’s  one  time  that 
we  got  ahead  of  the  astrologer  in  our  prognosis 
and  we  were  pleased.  In  just  such  things  as  these 
we  get  the  confidence  of  the  people. 

They  are  grateful.  It  is  always  pleasant 
when  we  are  called  to  the  front  verandah  of  our 
bungalow,  and  find  a small  company  of  people 
waiting  for  us.  There  is  a woman  just  able  to 
leave  the  hospital,  or  perhaps  a little  child  who 


A ITInrt  from  ilHahura 


9 


has  just  got  well  under  the  eare  it  has  received. 
With  the  patient  come  the  relatives  to  pay  their 
respects  by  giving  many  salaams.  The  ’doctor 
must  sit  down.  One  must  never  seejn  in  a hurry 
in  the  Orient,  you  know.  A nice  moist  garland 
of  jessamine,  or  of  tiny  yellow  chrvsanthemums 
is  put  about  her  neck  and  .she  is  presented  with  a 
tray  of  fruit,  bananas,  oranges,  pomegranates 
and  so  forth.  Generally  there  is  a little  pile  of 
sugar  on  one  side  of  the  brass  tray,  and  some 
betel  and  as  a mark  of  special  favor,  some  tobacco 
for  the  doctor  to  chew!  This  is  the  time  when 
we  have  an  opportunity  to  talk  to  the  people 
and  tell  them  why  we  have  the  hospital  and  what 


10 


A Wort  frmn  ^^!a^ltra 


we  are  trying  to  do.  We  are  there  to  .serve  them. 
We  want  to  show  them  what  we  do,  oiir  way 
of  caring  for  the  sick  in  hoth  body  and  soul. 
And  we  want  them  to  understand  that  we  do  as  we 
do,  not  just  because  it  is  our  way,  our  custom,  but 
because  it  is  a better  way.  We  are  there  to  give 
them  something  that  they  themselves  have  not 
got,  and  that  they,  within  themselves  alone,  have 
no  power  to  obtain. 

And  so  the  work  goes  on,  with  the  hospital 
and  its  forty  beds  full  of  patients,  the  outpractice 
where  we  get  a chance  to  go  to  the  homes  of  all 
castes,  even  of  the  highest;  and  the  disnensarv, 
where  anywhere  from  fifty  to  a hundred  people 
are  treated  every  day. 


A Ulnrft  frnm  ilHailura 


11 


We  hope  to  have  more  adequate  equipment 
for  caring  for  these  people  in  the  near  future. 
We’d  like  to  have  you  all  come  and  see  if  it’s 
not  worth  while,  but  in  the  meantime,  will  you  not 
take  our  word  for  it  and  share  the  joy  of  it  with  us. 

^ ours  in  His  service, 

K.\TH.\RINt:  M.  SCOTT. 


WOMAN’S  BOARD  OF  MISSIONS 
704  Congregational  House 
Boston,  IMass. 


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